Did ground school Fri. Night, then showed up to jump Sat. morning.

It was 11:30 before I got to jump. Kinda killed my chances of jumping twice, as I had somewhere I had to be shortly after dinner.

But that's ok....no plans next saturday until 8:30 at night.....

Saturday's jump was.......AWESOME. This time, I was 100% aware of what was going on...yeah, sensory overload, but I dealt with it. Had a little trouble keeping my legs extended, and learned the hard way to MAINTAIN THE ARCH!

When I deployed, I got sloppy w/ my left arm position, and bent my back while grabbing for the pilot.

This resulted in a twisted riser.

Amazingly, I had the good sense to remember what I was taught, reach up, grab the riser, pull, and kick my legs.

Twist came right back out.

Jumpmaster said I did fine; was sorta impressed that I could tell him all my mistakes instead of him having to tell me.


Other thing I did wrong: when I deployed, I relaxed, expecting an instant deployment. Like I said, I learned the hard way, maintain the arch.

other tiny thing I did wrong: harness was a bit loose. Again, lesson learned the hard way.....chest strap pushing against my chin will be a permanent reminder.



This is by far the coolest thing I have EVER done.


I always wondered what would make me skip opening day of dove season...well, here it is.

EDIT:

Ok, I'm thinking about starting to look for gear. I'm 6'0", 205-210 pounds.

First thing: what's the best pair of goggles made? I'm picky about my eyes.

Second: helmets.....after I finish AFF, do I really need a helmet?

Jumpsuits......where to start?

Parachutes....I'm hoping to find one used, locally, preferably for sale by a former student of my instructor's. That way he'll know what I'm looking at. Downside is, I'm not gonna be able to afford the 'chute anytime soon. Too much $$ at one time.

"Jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft is not a natural act." - Sgt Tom Highway

Quoted: "Jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft is not a natural act." - Sgt Tom Highway

Show me a perfectly good airplane.

Quoted: Quoted: "Jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft is not a natural act." - Sgt Tom Highway Show me a perfectly good airplane.

twisted riser, you were in a slight spin when you deployed... scares the hell out of ya but easy to fix. Kind of like a swing set wound up when you were a kid, just pull apart the lines above your head and you will rotate out of it.

keep us updated!

Quoted: twisted riser, you were in a slight spin when you deployed... scares the hell out of ya but easy to fix. Kind of like a swing set wound up when you were a kid, just pull apart the lines above your head and you will rotate out of it. keep us updated!

The jump was much scarier than the tandem...but I had no trouble doing it. When the plane leveled off, I remember wishing the guys in front of me would hurry up and get out.

I forgot to mention...when I was getting in position to jump (I get the feeling it's only a big deal when you're jumping with an instructor) I nearly feel out of the plane....slick shoe soles.

There's something kinda poetic about accidentally falling out of a plane while skydiving.

I got to watch a guy deploy his reserve, too. Had a line-over, decided to ditch his main. Amazingly, it floated down and landed right in the DZ.

bumped with edit....expert advice appreciated.

1-gogs:  never worried too much about them.  in reality, they are only a windshield.  i spent $20 and never worried.

2-helmet:  i never wore a helmet unless i was doing a RW jump.  then they become incredibly important.  closing speeds are a killer.  google 'bonehead'.  a SDU buddy of mine witnessed a bounce during the '96 WFFC in chicago.  as i (dimly) recall, the jumper muffed a canopy xfer at about 300', and hit at 70-80mph.  broke many, many bones, but not his brain bucket.  i believe it was a 'bonehead' helmet.  if i could have afforded one, i would have worn it for every jump.

3-rig:  never, ever, ever impulse buy.  if you do, you'll probably find the exact same gear at 60% of the price within a month.  in '95, i picked up a used racer elite, PD 170 reserve, and a monarch135 ZP (non-elliptical) main for <$900.  if i hadn't been patient, i would have spent DOUBLE that amount buying the same gear.  

get to know the jumpers who are going for a new license.  they'll be looking to sell their old gear.   you'll want to look for guys going from a 'b' to a 'c'.  get to know the riggers, as they will be a good source of info on this.

don't be afraid to buy components.  if you find a good container at a great price, pick it up now, and wait on the canopy.  remember that most jumpers go through canopies faster than containers.   the possible exception is the new license-holder, who will be going to a much smaller canopy and much smaller container at the same time.

you're probably jumping a 300sqft canopy right now.  look for a f111 (porous) 250.  there are many manufacturers out there, but you can never go wrong with PD.  (performance designs)  don't worry about zero-porosity right now.  your DZ will probably not let you use it until you get your C license.  then again, i used free booze to bribe my DZ mgr, and was jumping a sabre 150 on jump 30, so you never know.

as far as the container, you'll probably get the best deal on a racer elite.  they look a bit awkward, but are significantly less expensive that a comparable talon, and the reserve deployment time is better.  then again, those talons are cool.  

4-jumpsuit:  who cares.  until you start RW, you won't need to worry about your fall rate.  i've jumped in jeans, bdus, shorts, and au naturelle.  now, if you're going directly into RW, this'll get bumped up the priority list.  at you're size, you'll fall pretty fast, so to be compatible with most RW fun jumpers, you'll want the suit to be a little loose.  just make sure that it fits your height properly.  if buying used, make sure that the holds are secure, and the bootie snaps work properly.  these HURT when they come open and bang into your leg at terminal.

please note that it is very important to write 'place parachute here', along with a large X, on the back of your jumpsuit.  i got more pity jumps that way...

i'd prioritize expenditure for gear as follows:

1.  container/reserve. (as good as you can possibly afford)

2.  altimiter.  (same)

3.  main.

4.  everything else.  

after the main, i'd go cheap on everything else and save your money for a cypress, but that's just me, and i'm no expert.

blue skies!

Quoted: Quoted: "Jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft is not a natural act." - Sgt Tom Highway Show me a perfectly good airplane.

Anything with wings, not rotors

This is the only hobby in the world that cannot fall under the saying: "IF AT FIRST YOU DONT SUCCEED... TRY AND TRY AGAIN"